The bestselling novelist Marian Keyes (right) has revealed that she is suffering from a "crippling" depression that has left her unable to write. This was how she broke the news to readers on her website this week:

My dear amigos, happy new year to you all and I hope your festive season was not too unpleasant. I'm very sorry but this is going to be a very short piece because I am laid low with crippling depression. Regular readers know that I've been prone to depression on and off over the years but this is in a totally different league. This is much, much worse. I know I'm leaving myself open to stinky journalists saying, 'What has she got to be depressed about, the self-indulgent whiner, when there are people out there with real troubles?', so I won't go on about it.

All I will say is that I'm aware that these are terrible times and that there are people out there who have been so ruined by the current economic climate that they've lost the roof over their heads and every day is a battle for basic survival and I wish I could make their pain go away. But although I'm blessed enough to have a roof over my head, I still feel like I'm living in hell. I can't eat, I can't sleep, I can't write, I can't read, I can't talk to people. The worst thing is that I feel it will never end. I know lots of people don't believe it, but depression is an illness and unlike, say, a broken leg, you don't know when it'll get better.

So amigos, I'm sorry to abandon you for the moment. Full service will be restored at some stage, I hope. Thank you in advance for your kindness because you've always been so lovely to me. And, once again, happy new year. I hope it's a nice one for you.